in this empty space of ours
by thisgirlnani
Summary: the moments shared between Bonnie Bennett and Damon Salvatore in the void of life and death / 01: He had offered to give her a piggyback. It wasn't her fault that he hadn't expected her to actually say yes.


so this short oneshot was inspired by a tumblr textpost by felliciitysmoaks. it was so cute that it brought on some feels and i had to write something. so here you go! i hope you enjoy :)

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"_I swear I've seen that before."_

Bonnie squinted off into the distance, studying the craggy rock structure that slightly resembled a crooked face. She drew back, confirming her assessment. "Yeah, I've definitely seen that at least two times already."

Her companion, one Damon Salvatore, was not delighted with this. He exhaled sharply, "That's great. We've been walking around in a circle in this no-man's land, just great…" his left foot kicked angrily against the ground.

Any time other than now, Bonnie would have glared and told Damon to calm down. Now, she was just as tired as he was from walking around, her feet hurt like hell, and they had no clue as to where they had landed.

She plopped down on the ground, groaning in relief. The hard surface was uncomfortable, but the weight off of her feet felt amazing.

Damon stayed standing, his blue eyes darkening. "I'm beginning to think actually dying was the better option."

Bonnie pursed her lips, "You don't mean that." She tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. "We'll figure something out." She meant to be reassuring, but at the same time, she was still uneasy, herself.

He sighed, exhaling once more and pushing a hand through his black hair. "Alright, c'mon Bennett, we have to keep moving, who knows what'll come crawling out of the shadows this time." He grumbled.

"Can't we-"Bonnie stopped mid-sentence, feeling guilty. She was tired and wanted a bit more rest before continuing to walk again. She shook her head. This was not the time to be selfish. They needed to get back home. "Never mind, let's go."

Damon, ever the one with sharp eyes, noticed her hesitation. "What's wrong?" he demanded.

She shook her head, "Forget it."

He didn't budge. "Spill it."

"I said_, forget it."_

"And I said _spill it._"

Now she glared, both at him and his irritatingly stubborn ways. "I'm just tired, okay? We've been walking around for _ages_." Her tone took on a sharper tone than she intended and Damon reacted accordingly.

He rolled his eyes with a scoff. "You're tired, Judgy? I'm tired too, I'm not complaining though."

She let out a noise of disbelief. Leave it to Damon Salvatore to make you say something and then get angry about it to make you seem like the bad guy.

"First of all," Bonnie hissed. "You told me to spill it." Her hands went up into the air in exasperation. "I can't believe it. Of all the people to die with, it had to be you."

Damon folded his arms, "Well, I'm not exactly happy about it either." He replied, crossly.

_Oh there's a surprise. _Bonnie glowered. _He'd probably be infinitely happier if she were Elena. In fact, a remote No Man's Land would probably be paradise to him if it were just the two lovebirds._

She sighed, regretting her petty thoughts. All this arguing was going to help nothing. Although the two of them hadn't exactly been the picture of harmony and friendship, they had worked well as a tag team in the past. That was something nobody, including her, could deny.

Bonnie peered over at Damon. He seemed to have calmed down, and when he noticed her stare, he approached with a sigh, "Look, we can't just stay here. It's dangerous." When she didn't respond, he continued. "What do you want me to do, carry you?" He asked dryly.

She was about to continue the banter with a scoff. Because normally, Bonnie Bennett did not get carried around by Damon Salvatore. Normally, Bonnie Bennett reprimanded or judged Damon Salvatore.

However, dying together and then reappearing in some No Man's Land was _not normal._

So, instead, Bonnie shrugged with a nonchalant expression and replied, "That would be nice."

Damon's blue eyes widened for a split second. She supposed he hadn't thought she'd actually say yes. "You're serious?" he asked cautiously.

"Look," she sighed, dusting off her hands. "If you're not going to follow through, Salvatore, don't offer to do it in the-AH!" she let out a cry when she suddenly she was lifted up, strong hands supporting her lower back and her knees. Damon was carrying her, _bridal style_.

Bonnie reddened, flustered and caught off-guard. She put her weight against his arms, earning a muffled '_oof_' from the vampire and once her foot found the surface, she awkwardly clambered down.

She straightened, taking a defensive stance. "What the _hell_ was that?" Bonnie demanded. That was weird, very weird. It was too sudden to be taking their friendship from snarky banter to carrying each other bridal style.

Damon rubbed at his sore arm, "Are you kidding me?" he growled. "You _said_ you wanted me to carry you." His arms spread open, "in case you didn't know, that was me, carrying you!"

"I-I meant like piggyback!" she sputtered indignantly.

"Piggyback?" he repeated, incredulously, "What are you, 5?"

Her eyes flashed angrily and her mouth opened to form a retort. She stopped, however, when he sighed and squatted down. A position that made her speechless for a seconds before she burst out laughing, "What are you doing?"

He glared, his mouth set in a childish grimace. "You're small. You'd probably break something trying to jump onto my back."

Her eyebrow rose quizzically, "Damon Salvatore is actually going to give me a piggyback ride." If only she still had her phone to capture this moment. If they ever made it back, nobody would ever believe this.

Damon's jaw clenched. "I'm trying to be considerate, Bonnie."

Bonnie grinned widely as she looked over him once more, and climbed onto his back. She rested her arms above his shoulders and clasped her fingers together.

"Oof," Damon grunted as he stood up, hooking his fingers around her legs to support her weight. "Somebody's been eating their vegetables."

Bonnie let out a genuine laugh, relaxing against his back. A teensy part of her felt guilty for making him carry her, but she figured, she deserved at least a piggyback ride for everything she'd been through. She noticed with a start, that Damon had craned his head a bit to look at her with an unreadable expression.

"What?" she queried. "First time ever giving a piggy back ride?"

He turned back, but she could see a hint of a smile on his lips. "You should be honored, Judgy."

"Oh, I am," she agreed. "But really, why were you staring?" she asked curiously.

"It's nothing," he paused. "I'm just glad that you're…well _happier_."

Her eyes widened at his words. Since when did Damon Salvatore care whether or not she was happy?

"I mean," he continued, "it _sucks_ when you're all irritable. The only thing saving me is you can't witchy migraine me."

Of course, Bonnie smiled. Sentimentality was not Damon's strong suit. She swatted his head lightly, not needing to see his face to know he was smirking.

"Sleep." He advised. "It'll be your turn to carry me soon."

A soft laugh escaped her. Damon could irritate her like no other but he could also make her laugh like no other. She closed her eyes, feeling all the tension leave her body. Perhaps things wouldn't be so bad after all. They'd find a way to figure things out.

She felt herself drifting off, but before she completely succumbed, she mumbled against his shirt collar. "Damon…"

"Yeah?"

"I'm happy…that I'm not alone, here."

There seemed to be an infinitely long pause before she heard him chuckle in response.

"Me too, Bonnie, me too."


End file.
